Hard Day

A Hard Day is a well-crafted action thriler, plenty with both cop-movie conventions and jaw-dropping twists and turns. With its efficient score and awe-inspiring cinematography, it is a pleasurable two-hour rollercoaster ride.

I usually do not like Korean movies – it is either too violent or too sensational with scripts that generally lacks originality - but this one is quite good: very interesting plot with lots of twists and suspense and humor.

The movie centers around a divorced cop, Go Geon-soo (Lee Sun Gyun), on the day of his mom's funeral when he accidentally kills a pedestrian. Since he is in a hurry, he decides to put the corpse into her coffin and deal with it later. Strange calls starts to come into the police station and Go is threatened by a man who claims to be a witness of the accident. Meanwhile, Go is assigned to investigate this accident where pedestrian seems to be an important person in the police's wanted list.

Just the packed elements within the case are interesting to follow. Then with all the twists and surprises it is engaging throughout to watch. Excellent directing with a brisk tempo which leads you deep the puzzle. The story is easy to follow but the mood is not serious or heavy because every now and then there is always something funny that make you chuckle/surprise or awe.

I like the camera-work too which always leads the audience to see from a different angle. The framing is artistically pleasant, including a lengthened aerial shot of a chase scene up a flight of stairs and across traffic. I literally held my breath to watch that one.

Corrupted police are everywhere but how the script presents the story is very interesting and it is kind of fun to put all the coincidences together to make a coherent story with some clever types of black humor.

The actors are quite good too. The only complaint I have is perhaps too much violence in certain scene – though it is probably mild compared to other violent Korean movies I have seen.

If you like witty laugh and suspense you would not be disappointed.

A HARD DAY is another electric thriller from those top film-makers in South Korea, who know how to pack more laughs, action, and genuine suspense-filled set-pieces into their films than many a Hollywood rival. A HARD DAY tells a small-scale story about a cop on the edge; investigated by Internal Affairs for corruption, he accidentally hits and kills a pedestrian while out driving one night and must cover up the crime before he's discovered.

This premise is just the set-up for a film that comes off as a string of sometimes awesome set-pieces. The long sequence in the room with the coffin is a masterwork of tension, and if the rest of the movie can't quite equal that high, then it does a very good job nonetheless. A HARD DAY has everything you'd want from a thriller: dark laughs, shock scenes, violence, and some plot twists you definitely won't see coming. I particularly enjoyed the endless climax, which keeps you on the edge of your seat and leaves you breathless afterwards. Check it out!

This is one of those very rare films where literally every second is interesting. Captivating from the opening scene, the film grabs you and never lets go. So much happened within the first twenty minutes of the film, you can't help but root for our hero, Ko Gun-Soo, excellently played by Sun-kyun Lee. I rooted for this poor character every step of the way!

The plot thickened by the minute, but hey, this is one of those films where you can't say too much in order not to spoil it. This is one you simply have to see. The film becomes more thrilling and suspenseful as it progresses and some of the action and fighting scenes are truly brilliant. What an absolute treat! Bloody hell, this was awesome!!

A great Entertaining South Korean film that is full of drama & thrills. Especially the portion of the film in which the hero tries to hide victim's dead body inside his mother's coffin.

The background score and the cinematography adds to the plot. There were some thrilling and tense moments that will put you at the edge of your seat.

With all the twists and surprises it is engaging throughout to watch. Excellent direction by 'Seong-hoon Kim'. The actor Sun-kyun Lee played the role of troubled cop superbly and with emotion.

The story is easy to follow but the mood is not serious or heavy because every now and then there is always something funny that make you chuckle/surprise or awe. Overall worth-seeing film. Thumbs Up!!!